Pacific Columbia
|largest_city = |official_languages = None |demonym = Pacific Columbian(s) Columbers |regional_languages = |ethnic_groups = 74% White 13% Asian 8% Black 5% Multiracial |ethnic_groups_year = 2010 |government_type = |leader_title1 = President |leader_name1 = James Bloomberg |leader_title2 = Prime Minister |leader_name2 = Robert Cantwell |legislature = Parliament |upper_house = Senate |lower_house = Legislative Assembly |sovereignty_type = Independence |sovereignty_note = |established_event1 = from the |established_date1 = January 1, 1892 |established_event2 = from |established_date2 = August 11, 1894 |established_event3 = Constitution |established_date3 = December 20, 1894 |area = |area_km2 = 2,886,485 |area_sq_mi =1,114,478 |area_footnote = |percent_water =11.1 |area_label = Total |area_label2 = |area_data2 = |population_estimate = 15,431,826 |population_estimate_rank = 70th |population_estimate_year = 2013 |population_census = |population_census_year = |population_density_km2 = |population_density_sq_mi = |population_density_rank = |GDP_PPP =$1.591 trillion |GDP_PPP_rank = 12th |GDP_PPP_year =2014 |GDP_PPP_per_capita = $44,843 |GDP_PPP_per_capita_rank = 21st |GDP_nominal = $1.788 trillion |GDP_nominal_rank =12th |GDP_nominal_year = 2014 |GDP_nominal_per_capita = |GDP_nominal_per_capita_rank = |Gini = 33.7 |Gini_ref = medium |Gini_rank = 104th |Gini_year = 2010 |HDI = 0.902 |HDI_ref = |HDI_rank = 8th |HDI_year = 2013 |currency = Pacific Columbia Dollar ($) |currency_code = PCD |time_zone = PCT |utc_offset = |time_zone_DST = |utc_offset_DST = |DST_note = |date_format = dd-mm-yyyy |drives_on = right |cctld = |iso3166code = PC |official_website = www.pacificcolumbia.gov.pc |calling_code = +1 |vehicle_reg = |aircraft_code = |patron_saint = |footnote_a = |footnote_b = |footnote_h = |footnotes = }} Pacific Columbia, officially the Democratic Republic of Pacific Columbia, is a country located in the northwestern region of on the coast of the . It shares a border with both the and . It is the third largest country in by both geographical size and population. Pacific Columbia has twelve states that encompass the nation. The capital city is Central City. Before European exploration, there was a sizeable population. Several tribes existed across the islands of Pacific Columbia. From these tribes, several artifacts such as and have been found. A measles epidemic wiped out the native population in the late 1700s. Before the formation of the republic, there were three separate entities that existed: , and . The former belonging to Canada and the latter, the United States. The Pacific Columbian Movement started in the mid 1800s, which the governments of the United States and Canada largely ignored. The Four Year War was the largest battle that Pacific Columbia faced and ensured independence in the end with the signing of the Vancouver Treaty. Pacific Columbia is a and a . The highest office is the President of Pacific Columbia, which is largely ceremonial. The current officeholder is President James Bloomberg. The most powerful political office is that of Prime Minister, which chairs the Cabinet. The current office holder is Prime Minister Robert Cantwell. There is no official language of Pacific Columbia, but the nation identifies itself as an . There are, however, large minority groups who speak a second language. The largest of these is the . Pacific Columbia is a and one of the wealthiest in the world. The country is a member of several international organizations such as the , the and the forum. Etymology Initially, the name for the nation was to be: Columbia, after the . But, after some debate the Provisional Governing Council decided that it was too similar to that of . In a narrow vote of six to five, the name Pacific, was chosen to put in front of it, to distinguish it from the country. History 'Early History' Pacific Columbia encompasses a region of what is called the . The region was first inhabited by Native American tribes. The tribes are well known for their and intricately carved masks and canoes. A large portion of food was from and . The inland tribes largely used hunting and gathering, plus an additional source from light agriculture work for food. wiped out much of the Native population in the late 1700s. 'European Exploration' Main article: In 1579 the British captain and erstwhile privateer sailed up the west coast of North America perhaps as far as Oregon or even British Columbia before returning south to land and make ship repairs. At this landing site, probably near present-day , Drake claimed the region for England, naming it . , a captain in the employ of Spain, might have found the around 1592. The strait was named for him, but whether he discovered it or not has long been questioned. During the early 1740s, sent the to the region. By the late 18th century and into the mid-19th century, Russian settlers had established several posts and communities on the northeast Pacific coast, eventually reaching as far south as , . The was named after these settlements. In 1774 the viceroy of sent in the ship Santiago to the Pacific Northwest. Peréz made landfall on the on July 18, 1774. The northernmost latitude he reached was 54°40′ N. This was followed, in 1775, by another Spanish expedition, under the command of and including Juan Peréz and as officers. On July 14, 1775 they landed on the near the mouth of the . Due to an outbreak of scurvy, Heceta returned to . On August 17, 1775 he sighted the mouth of the Columbia River but could not tell if it was a river or a major strait. His attempt to sail in failed due to overly strong currents. He named it Bahia de la Asúnciõn. While Heceta sailed south, Quadra continued north in the expedition's second ship, the Sonora. He reached 59° N, before turning back. In 1778 English mariner visited on and also voyaged as far as . In 1779 a third Spanish expedition, under the command of in the ship Princesa, and with Quadra as captain of the ship Favorite, sailed from Mexico to the coast of , reaching 61° N. Two further Spanish expeditions, in 1788 and 1789, both under and , sailed to the Pacific Northwest. During the second expedition they met the American captain near Nootka Sound. Upon entering Nootka Sound, they found and his ship the Iphigenia. There followed the , which was resolved by agreements known as the . In 1790 the Spanish sent three ships to Nootka Sound, under the command of . After establishing a base at Nootka, Eliza sent out several exploration parties. was sent north to the Alaska coast. , with as pilot, explored the Strait of Juan de Fuca, discovering the and in the process. Francisco de Eliza himself took the ship San Carlos into the Strait of Juan de Fuca. From a base at , his pilotos (masters) and explored the San Juan Islands, , , and . In the process they discovered the and explored it as far north as . The expedition returned to Nootka Sound by August 1791. , sailing for Spain, explored and mapped the coast from to Prince William Sound in 1791, then sailed to Nootka Sound. A scientific expedition in the manner of James Cook, Malaspina's scientists studied the and peoples before returning to Mexico. Another Spanish explorer, , sailed the ship Aranzazu to Nootka Sound in May 1792. There he met Quadra, who was in command of the Spanish settlement and Fort San Miguel. Quadra sent Caamaño north, to carefully explore the coast between Vancouver Island and , Alaska. Various Spanish maps, including Caamaño's, were given to in 1792, as the Spanish and British worked together to chart the complex coastline. From 1792 to 1794, George Vancouver charted the Pacific Northwest on behalf of Great Britain, including the Strait of Georgia, the bays and inlets of , and the – and much of the rest of the and southeast Alaska shorelines. For him the city of and Vancouver Island are named, as well as . From Mexico, Malaspina dispatched last Spanish exploration expedition in the Pacific Northwest, under and aboard the schooners Sutil and Mexicana. They met Vancouver in the Strait of Georgia on June 21, 1792. Vancouver had explored Puget Sound just previously. The Spanish explorers knew of Admiralty Inlet and the unexplored region to the south, but decided to sail north. They discovered and entered the shortly before meeting Vancouver. After sharing maps and agreeing to cooperate, Galiano, Valdés, and Vancouver sailed north to and the Discovery Islands, charting the coastline together. They passed through Johnstone Strait and returned to Nootka Sound. As a result, the Spanish explorers, who had set out from Nootka, became the first Europeans to circumnavigate Vancouver Island. Vancouver himself had entered the Strait of Juan de Fuca directly without going to Nootka first, so had not sailed completely around the island. In 1786 , representing , sailed to the Queen Charlotte Islands after visiting Nootka Sound but any possible French claims to this region were lost when La Pérouse and his men and journals were lost in a shipwreck near . Upon encountering the Salish coastal tribes, either Pérouse or someone in his crew remarked, "What must astonish most is to see painting everywhere, everywhere sculpture, among a nation of hunters". Maritime fur trader also visited the area in the Imperial Eagle, a British ship falsely flying the flag of the . American merchant sea-captain Robert Gray traded along the coast and discovered the mouth of the Columbia River.